BBC presenter labelled a 'racist wee s****' in vitriolic online comments after
suggesting an independent Scotland could find it hard to secure European
Union membership

The fallout from Alex Salmond's heated interview with Andrew Marr has continued as Nationalists were accused of intimidating journalists after the BBC warned its complaints procedure was being skewed by "lobbying".

The presenter was labelled a "self-important little weasel" and a "racist wee s****" in comments on pro-independence online forums after challenging the First Minister over a separate Scotland's European Union membership.

Fears of a Nationalist campaign to bombard the show with complaints surfaced as the BBC refused to reveal the number of people who had registered their dissatisfaction due to "evidence of lobbying".

Links to the BBC's complaints procedure had been posted under online discussions criticising Mr Marr, while one SNP minister had warned of "consequences" for the presenter after the show.

A source from the pro-UK Better Together campaign said: "This organised campaign to intimidate journalists and to make sure that people don’t hold a different view from the government is utterly shameful."

The row emerged after the First Minister's appearance on BBC's One's Andrew Marr Show on Sunday when the pair clashed over an independent Scotland's EU membership prospects.

Mr Salmond reacted angrily when Mr Marr said during the line of questioning: "I think it would be quite hard to get back in, I have to say."

The First Minister asked whether this was "Andrew Marr analysis" or the corporation's official point of view being expressed.

Mr Marr said he was reflecting the views of José Manuel Barroso, the European Commission President, who last month said on the show it would be “extremely difficult, if not impossible” for a separate Scotland to join the EU.

He told Mr Salmond that Mr Barroso had been “absolutely adamant in private and in public on the sofa” and that he claimed to be speaking for “many other” European leaders.

Pete Wishart MP, the Nationalists’ broadcasting spokesman, warned there would be “consequences” for Mr Marr and alleged the presenter was part of the Better Together campaign.

After the interview, images of Mr Marr decked out in a Union Jack suit, tie and top hat appeared online while the presenter was labelled a "disgrace" for displaying his "bias" in comments posted on a pro-independence site.

Another said: "Marr quite clearly stated his OWN opinion, and he is a racist wee s****."

A third message read: "Marr what a disgrace......sloppy work just parroting stuff already discredited."

The phenomenon of so-called "cybernats" – fervent pro-independence supporters who attack public figures over perceived pro-UK comments – has affected media personalities in the past.

Jim Naughtie, the BBC radio presenter, was criticised for showing Unionist bias when he moved to Scotland to play a closer role in the corporation's election coverage.

Sarah Smith, who recently joined the BBC's referendum team from Channel 4, said she was "surprised" by the accusations of bias she received on social media sites before even taking up the role.

Last week the BBC defended itself from accusations of bias before Holyrood committee, telling MSPs that it did not recognise recent academic research supposedly revealing the corporation's pro-UK leaning in news coverage.

An SNP spokesperson said the pro-UK campaign was increasingly focusing on process stories and losing touch with the substance of the debate.

"We have clearly and consistently said that there is no place for the denigration of anyone in the referendum debate, whether from the Yes side or the No side, and we reiterate that," she said.

"The specific issue at stake was Mr Marr expressing an opinion on a political issue, which appears to be inconsistent with the BBC's guidelines. It's a perfectly reasonable point to make, and talk of an 'organised campaign' is the kind of daft talk we have come to expect from the PR people in the No campaign."